Teacher and Teaching-related Practices Student Teachers May Have Difficulty Believing They Can Enact/Engage in While in Field Practice: Perspectives from Student Teachers and Teachers in Field-practice Schools

Abstract

Field practice is pivotal in teacher education, serving both as a bridge connecting the theoretical and practical dimensions of the teaching profession in real-world schools, and as a place for acquiring the complex core skills of the profession in their own right. While prior work has mainly explored general teacher self-efficacy, or broad student-related concerns in field practice, there is surprisingly little knowledge of the specific teacher and teaching-related practices that might challenge student teachers during field practice. This study aims to address this gap by exploring the issue both from the student teacher and the field-practice teacher perspective. Utilizing focus groups and individual interviews with students and field-practice teachers, the study employs content analysis, and an innovative agreement circle to identify which practices students may doubt they can enact/engage in while in field practice. The findings highlight four main areas of concern stemming from both students and field practice teachers: adaptability in teaching; balancing subject knowledge with pedagogical competence; classroom leadership; and teaching independently. The study also uncovers discrepancies between student teachers, who are preoccupied with their teaching performance, and field-practice teachers, who also emphasize the importance of collaborative practices with, for example, parents. The study opens a new field of inquiry and is the first step towards a theory of practice self-efficacy in education. Future research could focus on creating measurement tools to evaluate student teacher efficacy in field practice within the four identified areas, thereby enabling identification of early challenges, assessment of field-practice effectiveness, and the provision of tailored field-practice preparation.